I'm getting a kick out of this thread. If being a dog owner means I have to cart my massive balls around in a wheelbarrow, I'll stick to cats, thanks.
Seriously, though, in reading this thread it seems to me that if you have to worry about possibly kicking the ass (macing, whatever) every dog (or dog owner) you encounter when you're out with with your dog, that would take a lot of the fun out of having a dog.